UBC Press Discovering Main Street book Paperback 192 pages

Small towns punctuate the landscape of Oregon and Washington. They
burrow in crinkles of hills, sit alongside mighty rivers, survive in
desert canyons and sagebrush plains, dot the fertile Willamette valley,
and perch at the edge of the Pacific Ocean.
In Discovering Main Street, Foster Church reveals the
unexpected and unique pleasures of exploring small towns, what he calls
“the last frontier of American tourism.”
Organized by region—Willamette Valley, Oregon Coast, Southern
Oregon, Eastern Oregon, and Southern Washington—the profiles in
Discovering Main Street begin with route tips and end with comments on
where to stay and eat. Church’s engaging narratives provide
history, highlights, and insights into each of the nearly fifty
profiled communities.
A useful introduction summarizes Church’s recommendations,
which include hanging out at the local cafe, attending a school sports
event, and hiking the surroundings—because without exception,
small towns in the Northwest are set in hauntingly beautiful
environments, from stark deserts to deep, mossy forests.
Discovering Main Street provides an alternative to the
outdoor adventure guides that dominate bookshelves in the Northwest. It
will appeal to armchair travelers, to Northwest enthusiasts, and to any
curious explorers seeking adventure in hidden—and
unexpected—places.

Foster Church is a Pulitzer Prize winning
journalist and a staff writer for The Oregonian for
twenty-seven years. His travel articles have appeared in
newspapers throughout the United States. He lives in Portland,
Oregon.